Jun
08
Posted by
Lorain County Moms
My twins turned 5 this week. Between all of the preschool birthday celebrations and the birthday party (you know the one where I invited every child in both of their classes? Can you even imagine 32 four- and five-year-olds in one room … after eating chocolate cake?) I didn’t have time to think much about kindergarten orientation.
OK, fine. I didn’t know about it until a week before so I didn’t have much time to obsess about it.
I came prepared the way any good blogger would. I had my camera and my iPhone. I figured I could Twitter during the boring parts.
The tweeting never happened. First of all, I got stuck in the front row and second of all as soon as the principal started talking I...
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May
12
Posted by
Lorain County Moms
In January, right after my son Holden turned 3, we decided to potty train him. He was showing every sign of being ready. He’s incredibly verbal. He knows how to tell us when he has to go. Hell, he’ll pee on demand for a piece of candy corn. (Don’t judge me!) So we ditched the diapers and went for it.
On Day Two, I walked into the living room and discovered (through nose power) that Holden had pooped and went foraging for treasure in his underwear. I controlled my gag reflex, cleaned the kid up, and we discussed an important Rule of Poo: Don’t put your hands in your tushie. We’ll call this the Second Rule of Poo.
On Day Three, I walked into the boys’ bedroom and discovered an even bigger mess. Not only had...
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May
07
Posted by
Lorain County Moms
I really can’t say no one told me. I had a little introduction to what life would be like with kids when I worked as a nanny for a brief period after college. The family had a 5-year-old daughter and twin 2-year-old boys, each as different as night and day. But it was only for eight hours a day and I was able to go to my own home at the end of the day, so I didn’t get the 24/7 hazing back then. Years later, my 24/7 on-the-job training as a mom has taught me that having three little boys means:
Dirt and goo. Lots of it, often of (thankfully) unknown origins.
Cleaning the kitchen floor every day to remove sticky goo.
Cleaning the bathroom every day because it takes years for boys to develop good...
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Feb
13
Posted by
besttech
Yesterday, filled with excitement and joy, I went to the open house at the school my son will be attending next year. It’s a wonderful school and a great community and I am really looking forward to being a part of it for the next nine years, from kindergarten through eighth grade.
The principal talked to us “new parents” about curriculum and special projects and hot lunch, the usual… And then she went through a typical day for kindergartners: “Children can start arriving at 7:45 a.m. … and we officially start our day at 8 a.m.”
I had seen the 8 a.m. on the sheet that was handed out, and hoped it had been a misprint.
“Oh no, it’s not a misprint,” I thought. And all of a...
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Jan
28
Posted by
besttech
“Mommy, what’s wrong with you? Are you sick?”
My 3-year-old asked me that question one morning when he saw me taking the three pills I take every day. How do you answer a question a 3-year-old poses that you can’t even answer yourself? And how do you explain lupus and rheumatoid arthritis and other assorted auto immune disorders to a 3-year-old?
Well, yes, I’m sick. I’ve come to terms with it, having been diagnosed a few months ago. I know I will be on medication for the rest of my life. I know I will never be the me, before. That’s how I tell time now. “Oh, that happened before I got sick.”
“I am sick, Michael. But these pills make Mommy feel better.”
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Jan
16
Posted by
besttech
My son Jack is having a tough time in kindergarten this year. Most of this is due to his disability — he’s autistic and needs a lot of support. My husband and I, Jack’s teachers, and Jack’s aides think he needs a one-to-one aide, meaning it would be someone’s job to sit next to him all day and make sure he can learn with the rest of the class and remain safe.
We have a meeting scheduled for this week at which time we will be presenting our case to Jack’s educational team, as well as representatives from the district. This is the second meeting we’ve had about this issue. At the first meeting, everyone who works with Jack on a daily basis (and me, his mother) said he needs one-to-one support. Then the special education supervisor...
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Nov
27
Posted by
besttech
By Nicole DC METRO MOMS BLOG
I don’t shower … first thing in the morning. There, I said it.
If you get your child or children ready for school in the morning, make lunches, get hubby out the door and find the time to shower, get dressed, blow-dry your hair and put on a little makeup, then I applaud you. I truly do, you must be a morning person.
My morning routine consists of all of the above — except the shower part. I have gotten into a habit of showering in the late afternoon or early evening because I really don’t have ANY OTHER TIME to do it.
You may be thinking, “Well, bathing is pretty basic, staying clean is that...
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Nov
11
Posted by
besttech
By Kelly Maguire DC METRO MOMS BLOG
I work outside the home four days a week, which means that the normal three-ring circus in a house with two kids must have a finale before 8 a.m. On a really good day the kids get breakfast at the table, on an OK day they eat in the car and on (most) harried days they wear jammies to the car and eat the daycare-provided breakfast.
When we found a home a few miles north of where we currently live and needed to sell our beloved, but small, townhouse, we set in action the crazy series of events required to move on two properties (i.e., buying the new place and selling our existing house). This meant turning the circus on its head and performing Herculean feats to get...
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Oct
16
Posted by
besttech
By Stacy K. DC METRO MOMS BLOG
This isn’t easy to admit: I need a babysitter. I need someone to watch my 9-month-old baby in my home for a few hours week. I don’t think this is such an outlandish need. I realize that at age 28 I’m often seen as scandalously young for being a mother in the Washington, D.C., area and it wasn’t that long ago that I was a teenage babysitter myself. Even more recently I worked as a nanny. Read: I HAVE BEEN ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THAT SEA. I’m having a doozy of time being on the other side of THIS table. I just don’t know where to look or how to find an affordable, clean, trustworthy person to watch my little baby while I sit in the other room and do some writing.
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Oct
08
Posted by
besttech
By Kimberly DC METRO MOMS BLOG
I had my babies young. One month after I turned a sweet and legal 21, I eloped in Vegas and discovered that I was pregnant. Or maybe it was the other way around. Needless to say, my family was thrilled. My point is that I was far from being a grown-up when I began raising my own daughters.
Having children early in life has a plethora of perks. In your early 20s, you are active and hip; you don’t mind the late nights as much; and you are in current possession of resilient skin tone. Sayings like, “in my day” would never roll off your tongue because, apart from the baby attached to your breast, you are still in your day. Besides looking the part, being a young mom...
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